Latest news with #UnitedBodegasofAmerica
CBS News
05-05-2025
- CBS News
NYC to invest in SilentShield panic buttons to protect bodega workers, customers. Here's how the tech works.
Hundreds of bodegas in New York City will soon get a panic button to keep employees and customers safe. On Sunday, Mayor Eric Adams announced $1.6 million will be invested in technology that will give police direct and immediate access to the bodega surveillance video once the button is pushed during a crime. Read more: Video shows suspects disguised as NYPD officers robbing bodega in Brooklyn How SilentShield technology works In a push to keep bodegas safe, the mayor announced the city's intent to use SilentShield technology -- a button that will be installed in the bodega that staff can press. It will call police immediately during an emergency. Back in June 2018, the city was shocked by the murder of 15-year-old Lesandro "Junior" Guzman-Feliz. As the teenager sought shelter in a Bronx bodega, he was brutally killed by gang members in a case of mistaken identity. Officials say a panic button could have helped the owner call police faster. "Panic buttons is what's going to save the lives of so many. Not just the lives of bodega owners and workers; the lives of so many that have ran into a bodega seeking safe shelter and they've been killed," said Fernando Mateo of United Bodegas of America. Officials say the buttons will be installed in 500 stores in the city and you won't know which shops have them. Police say once the SilentShield button is pressed it will directly connect police to the store's surveillance. "It gives our responding officers situational awareness to keep them safe. It helps with timely apprehensions and it gives our Detective Squad great tools to catch people after the fact," NYPD Chief of Department John Chell said. United Bodegas of America will be seeking competitive bids for the SilentShield technology and officials say installation is expected in the coming months. Bodega workers, customers welcome the initiative Dario Dominguez told CBS News New York he keeps a close eye on who comes into his Frederick Douglass Boulevard bodega. "When you got outside, you never know what could happen," Dominguez said. Police say a 33-year-old was fatally stabbed just feet away from the front door on Saturday morning. "Very bad. Too much problem, you know?" Dominguez said. "Anything can happen. Somebody is having a bad day, they knock into somebody, and it spills in to a fight," a customer said. "Sure, I would feel more safe," another added.
Yahoo
29-04-2025
- Yahoo
Men zip-tied by suspects wearing NYPD clothing in bodega robbery: sources
BED-STUY, Brooklyn (PIX11) – Three men were zip-tied by suspects wearing NYPD clothing during a robbery at a Brooklyn bodega on Sunday, sources and United Bodegas of America told PIX11 News. Police said the robbery happened at Tajuken Deli Grocery, located at 114 Marcus Garvey Blvd., around 8:15 a.m. A 48-year-old man, a 68-year-old man and a 40-year-old man were in the store at the time of the robbery, according to authorities. More Local News Sources said the three men were tied up as the suspects, wearing raid jackets and baseball caps with NYPD initials on them, robbed the deli. One of the victims was seen in surveillance video being forced to the ground by two of the suspects. The suspects, all believed to be men, fled the scene in a dark-colored van, according to authorities. United Bodegas of America claimed they stole lottery tickets and cash. More: Latest News from Around the Tri-State The group is asking Gov. Kathy Hochul to shell out a promised $5 million in funding to install panic buttons in bodegas located in high-crime areas, saying they've become targets largely due to 'broken bail laws.' United Bodegas of America is offering a $5,000 reward for information that leads to an arrest. Submit tips to police by calling Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477), visiting downloading the NYPD Crime Stoppers mobile app, or texting 274637 (CRIMES) then entering TIP577. Spanish-speaking callers are asked to dial 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). Erin Pflaumer is a digital content producer from Long Island who has covered both local and national news since 2018. She joined PIX11 in 2023. See more of her work here. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
18-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
NYC bodega workers demand panic buttons in stores following recent murders
A pair of killings in New York City bodegas has led workers to demand panic buttons be installed in their stores to alert police to any emergency, advocates said Friday. Fernando Mateo of the United Bodegas of America said state and city officials have promised to fund the panic buttons, but the money hasn't materialized. 'In the last 48 hours, we've had two people killed inside of a bodega,' Mateo said, standing outside the Ameer Deli & Grill, where a 24-year-old man was fatally knifed in the neck during a brawl with two other young men Wednesday evening. 'Let's stop the killings. We don't want to get up tomorrow and know that another person got killed in a bodega. We need to stop it.' On Thursday afternoon, Sorai King, 20, was shot in the neck and chest outside the Shak Deli at E. 217th St. and Bronxwood Ave. in Williamsbridge, Bronx during a fight with another man. King was on an errand to pick up a snack for his mom when he was shot, heartbroken relatives said. 'He was going to the store for his mother. He was very loving. He went to the store and he never came back,' the victim's 15-year-old niece Nana King told the Daily News. 'We only knew something was wrong when the detectives came.' No arrests have been made in either case. Mateo said if each bodega were equipped with a panic button, the police could have been immediately alerted and made an arrest — or even saved a life. '[It)] could be a life-saving tool for them,' said Mateo, who added that several of his members have asked for them to be installed. 'If someone walks into a bodega with a gun and is robbing the cashier, and he's in the back with a panic button, he can surprise that gunman by pressing a button and the cops will come immediately. 'We need for our governor to govern and to do what's right for these small businesses in New York City,' Mateo contined. 'We need cash to save lives, to save the lives of the people who vote you into office.' Mateo said that about 50 out of the more than 25,000 bodegas in the city have been equipped with panic buttons. 'Fifty is a drop in the bucket,' said Mateo, who said that the panic buttons currently installed only bring bodega workers to a calling center that reaches out to 911 for them. 'By the time that happens and all the questions are asked, people die and people get away with committing a crime,' said Mateo, who added that many bodega workers have quit over the violence they've witnessed. 'Employees quit when they see this type of violence occurring right in front of them. They're scared. They're nervous,' he said. 'It's hard enough to get employees to want to work in bodegas, because bodegas are not safe havens like they should be.' He's hoping the new panic buttons, once purchased, will video link directly to an NYPD command center so cops can see the crime occurring in real time and dispatch help immediately. 'It can all be avoided,' he said about the violence. 'It's technology. It's easy.' A new bill in Albany named the 'Bodega Act' has been drafted to provide grants to bodegas, convenience stores and food marts who want to install panic buttons and surveillance equipment in their stores. The legislation is currently being reviewed by the Assembly's codes committee. Last year, New York City Rep. Ritchie Torres introduced legislation that would allow bodega owners to dip into federal grant money to fund panic buttons and other security equipment. Torres introduced the bill after a spate of attacks on bodega workers left many of the small businesses on edge and spurred calls for more safety measures. 'We need for everyone in this city to understand that these bodegas are community centers,' Mateo said. 'They're not just [places] where people go in and buy something. When someone is running away from a problem, they run into a bodega because we're everywhere.' An email to the NYPD for comment on the UBA's panic button proposal was not immediately returned.
Yahoo
07-03-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Consumers seek alternatives to eggs as prices reach all-time high
NEW YORK (PIX11) — As egg-flation continues to see egg prices skyrocketing, the egg industry is reassuring consumers that it has nothing to do with anything other than bird flu. To suggest something else, it says, is misreading the facts and reality. More than 160 million birds died since the outbreak of avian flu on farms all across the country. The shortage of eggs has sent prices soaring to a 45-year high. More Local News Consumers are changing their morning breakfast habits:One shopper outside a New Jersey supermarket said, 'I've been eating eggs my whole life and I can't afford them now.' Another customer commented, 'They're $10 now. I'll probably buy a few more, but I'm not eating them right now. I go through spurts.' While some businesses are raising prices on egg sandwiches, some Bodegas in our area are lowering prices by switching from fresh eggs to more affordable liquid eggs Fernando Mateo, a spokesman for United Bodegas of America, pointed out, 'A container of liquid eggs costs 8 or 9 dollars for 18 eggs and for 12 regular eggs it's costing you 30 to 40% more.' Members of the United Bodega of America Association are being encouraged to lower prices for their signature bacon, liquid egg, and cheese sandwiches from $6 to 4 dollars 99 cents or lower. The group said it's trying to make a statement that bodegas will not allow inflation to make breakfast a luxury. More: Latest News from Around the Tri-State With the deadly bird flu detected in 42 of New York's 62 counties, Senator Kirsten Gillibrand is calling on Washington to take immediate action to stop its further spread. 'We need to work quickly to develop a vaccine for use on poultry to make sure we stop the spread of this disease before it becomes endemic to the U.S.,' she declared. Senator Gillibrand said she has sent a letter to government agencies calling for a comprehensive response to the bird flu. The Trump administration says it is already responding. But the New York Democrat isn't so sure of that. She commented, 'I am concerned that his administration's recent action to stop releasing critical data on the spread of bird flu and to fire USDA officials working to address the spread does not inspire much confidence in his ability to do so.' Just last week the Secretary of Agriculture laid out what she called a comprehensive plan to combat bird flu and bring down egg prices. With the money saved by cuts in the department, she said one billion dollars would be invested to find a long-term solution to the problem. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
